by Kay Correll
“Either.” Zoe shrugged.
“I snagged two glasses from the dining room, earlier. Always pays to be prepared.” He poured them both a glass of merlot and handed her one. “To weathering the storm.”
“To weathering the storm.” She raised her glass to his, hoping the island did fare well through all this.
Mason walked over and pulled out the desk chair for her. “Here, have a seat.”
She sat down, and he paced the room slowly. The light from the one lamp cast a cozy light around them, but it still felt strange with the windows boarded up and no glimpse at the outside world.
“It’s dark in here with the shutters up.” He turned back toward her. “Wish we could see out like we could at Lillian’s.”
Okay then, they were thinking the same thoughts now. How could they be so in sync when they’d only known each other a week or so?
“I know. That’s one of the things I hate about these storms. You just sit and wait and wonder.”
He finally settled down on the edge of the bed. “I’ve never been through anything like this before. Lillian gave me a battery-powered lantern and another flashlight. They’re over on the dresser if we need them.”
She took a sip of the wine as silence fell between them. Mason shifted on the bed. She sat stiffly on the chair.
“Listen… um… why don’t you come over here? You look uncomfortable. We’ll pile the pillows up on the bed and just relax there?” Mason suggested.
She looked from him to the decidedly comfortable bed with its stack of pillows and rose. “Sounds a lot more comfortable.”
He kicked off his shoes and scooted up to the head of the bed. She slipped off her flip-flops, handed him her wine, and climbed up from the foot of the bed. She settled next to him, leaning back on the pillows. He handed her back her glass of wine and she took another sip, ignoring how close he was to her. Inches away. Ignoring the rush of her pulse. Ignoring the heat of his body so close to her. Yes, she ignored all of that.
She glanced over at him, but he seemed unaffected by how close they were sitting, her racing pulse, or her riotous thoughts. So maybe their thoughts weren’t in sync now…
“Strange couple of days it’s been.” Mason adjusted a pillow behind him and leaned back again, still looking incredibly relaxed.
She was wound tighter than an eight-day clock. She frowned. Where had she heard that saying before? It wasn’t one that normally came to mind. She shook her head at her crazy thoughts and answered him. “It has been strange. Lillian and Gary’s wedding, then all the work to get ready for the storm.”
He smiled at her in the dim light of the lamp. “But, I’ve really enjoyed being able to spend time with you.”
As she searched his face, a look of tenderness mixed with desire filtered through his golden-brown eyes. He reached over and took her wine glass again and set it on the nightstand.
She swallowed, her racing pulse now galloping through her veins and her heart beating in a syncopated rhythm.
“And another thing.” He turned back to her, his gaze no longer leaving her face. “I’d sure like to kiss you again. I’ve been wanting to since that goodbye kiss on Sunday. Think that would be okay?”
She nodded silently. Yes, that would be okay. Better than okay. Then she closed her eyes as his warm lips settled on hers, his strong hand encircling the back of her neck as he pulled her closer.
When he finally let her go, her breath came out in quick gasps. Oh, the man knew how to kiss…
He tilted her chin up and looked into her eyes, searching her face. Then he brushed a thumb across her jawline. “You’re a very interesting woman, Zoe Birch. Can’t think of anyone I’d rather ride out the storm with.”
Her heart pounded furiously in her chest, matching the fury of the wind outside, as he leaned down and kissed her again. And then again.
As far as she was concerned, he could kiss her all through the stormy night.
Chapter 9
Robin followed Jay into his house. Barney looked up at them with a bored expression until he spied the kitten tucked in her arms. He got up, stretched, walked over, and stared up at her. She swore his face held an accusing look.
“Barney, you need to leave the kitten alone,” Jay warned the dog, then nodded at her. “Go ahead, put the kitten down.”
She gently set the kitten down, ready to scoop it up at the first sign of the dog being too rough. Barney sniffed the animal a few times, turned, and walked away.
“Well, I guess that’s it.” She admitted she was surprised. She’d thought that Barney would pester the kitty or… something.
“Told you Barney listens to me.” Jay headed to the kitchen. “I’ll get you a bowl to feed the kitten and I’ll get some dinner started for us.”
She fed the kitten and then leaned against a counter watching Jay make up some delicious smelling stir fry dish from items he’d found in his fridge. It sure paid to date a chef, that much was for certain.
“Oh, did you get the camera installed in Lillian’s office?”
“I did. I need to set up alerts and make sure Lillian knows how to shut it off when she’s in her office if she doesn’t want it on.”
“I can’t believe more money is missing. That’s so crazy. Why is someone targeting the inn? It’s not like we have huge cash deposits or anything. And since the first theft, we’ve been making an effort to take the deposit in every day.”
“I don’t know, but I’d sure like to catch whoever is doing it. Not only because I caught the blame for the first theft, but because I can’t believe someone would steal from Lillian. She’s so kindhearted and giving.”
Robin frowned. “I do hope we figure it out. I know it’s really bothering Lillian.”
“Of course it is. Not only is the money missing, but someone is invading her space, her privacy.”
Jay served up the food and they sat at the table. The kitten wandered around under their feet while Barney sat in the corner, watching. The kitten brushed up against her leg and she reached down to pet it. The kitty finally roamed over to Barney and sat there for a moment, then reached out to paw at Barney.
Barney wasn’t having it. He swatted at the kitten and made a noise. Not quite a growl, but a definite back off sound.
“Barney, be nice. The kitten is just a tiny thing,” Jay admonished the dog.
The kitten came back over to the table and she scooped her up. “I think I should name her.”
“You planning on keeping her?” Jay eyed her.
“Probably?” She wouldn’t mind having company at her bungalow. Charlotte would be moving out after she married Ben. The bungalow would just feel… empty. Maybe she could become a crazy cat lady and talk to her cat all the time.
“You’re keeping her. I can tell.” Jay shook his head, but a small smile played at the corners of his mouth. “You should probably have a name for her then.”
She paused and looked at the kitten in her arms. She was a small, orange and white tabby, with bright, curious eyes. I think I’ll call her Sunny. She looks like a Sunny, doesn’t she?”
“I guess so?” Doubt hovered in Jay’s eyes. “Seems strange to name a cat Sunny in the middle of a storm…”
“I think it fits her perfectly.”
Jay rose. “I’m going to clear the dishes and we can go in and sit in the front room. I want to pull up the weather, too. See if there are any changes.”
“I’ll help.” She stood, set Sunny on the floor, and grabbed her dishes. They stood side by side at the sink, rinsing the dishes and putting them in the dishwasher. Good to know Jay was a rinse off well before loading dishwasher person like she was. Charlotte barely ran a trace of water on the dishes before dropping them into the dishwasher. She’d been known to go behind Charlotte and re-rinse the dishes.
They finished up the dishes and settled onto the couch in the front room. Sunny immediately jumped up and started walking all over them. Jay raised his eyebrows in surprise before his expression turn
ed to one of amused affection. Barney sat near their feet but eyed the roving kitten.
A sudden gust of wind rattled the shutters. Jay grabbed his phone and checked the forecast. “Still at the same level but there’s one predictor who thinks the storm might shift to the south.”
“That’s not good.” Robin sighed. “Storms are so stressful. The waiting. The wondering when and where they’ll hit.”
“We’ll be fine.”
She appreciated his words of assurance, but of course, no one knew if they would be fine. If the storm intensified and the island took a direct hit…
She felt his fingers on her chin, turning her face to look at him. “We’ll be fine, Robs.”
“I hope so.” She settled against him and let Sunny’s antics entertain them. At least for now, she could pretend all that was happening outside didn’t exist. They were safe, cocooned up in Jay’s house.
Chapter 10
A dull throbbing of his arm roused Mason, and then a sensation of pins and needles shot up his arm. Opening his eyes slowly, he looked down to see Zoe in his arms, curled up next to him, sound asleep.
The last thing he remembered was them sitting on his bed, talking, asking questions, getting to know each other better. And the kisses. There had definitely been quite a lot of kissing going on.
He smiled down at her and carefully shifted a wayward lock of hair from her face. Her breathing came in slow, even breaths. Her lashes rested near her rosy cheeks. She looked so incredibly peaceful. He hated to move his arm, to disturb her.
The one lone lamp cast a protective low glow around them. He shifted slightly wondering if he could pull his arm free without disturbing her. But then, he didn’t really want to move her out of his arms.
A steady glaring alarm interrupted the peace. He looked down and saw Zoe stirring, then her eyes popped open. Then opened wider and she shot up and scooted a bit away from him. Her forehead wrinkled. “What’s the noise?”
“I’m not sure.”
She snatched her phone from her pocket and looked at it. “It’s an alert. The storm is gathering strength and now it’s aimed right at us. We’re supposed to evacuate.”
“What… well, what do we do in that instance?” He knew nothing about hurricanes except what he’d occasionally see on the news. And they never seemed quite real to him, always far, far away.
This one sure seemed real enough.
A banging at the door drew his attention and he heard his father’s voice. “Mason, wake up. We need to get off the island.”
He pushed off the bed, swinging and shaking his arm to chase away the numbness, and hurried over to open the door. His father looked past him at Zoe sitting on the bed but said nothing about finding her here in his room. In his bed…
“Let’s go. We need to evacuate. Meet us downstairs in five minutes. We’re leaving. You two should ride with us.”
Zoe was climbing off the bed and answering her phone that was now ringing. “Noah, yes, we heard. We’re heading out.” She paused and looked over at Gary. “No, you don’t have to come get me. Gary said we could ride with them. We’ll meet up with you later on the mainland.”
She clicked off her phone and turned to him. “Noah is making sure the people at the community center have rides off the island, then he and Sara are headed to the mainland.”
“Five minutes,” his father said again and disappeared.
“I need to grab a few things from my room. Two minutes. I swear.” Zoe rushed past him and over to her room next to his.
He glanced around the room, grabbed his laptop, and shoved it into its case, along with some paperwork. He threw his toiletries into a carryon and added a change of clothes. Good enough.
He met Zoe in the hallway. She was carrying a duffle with her things. They hurried down to The Nest. The wind had picked up even more, and they struggled against it as they hurried out to Gary’s SUV, tossing their few things inside as they climbed in. Lucky climbed onto Lillian’s lap as Gary started the motor. They headed toward Main Street and then turned toward the road to the bridge. There they were met with a line of cars. None of them moving.
“Is this normal?” Mason peered out at the traffic.
“No. It should be moving. Slowly, but moving.” Lillian frowned.
He saw a man walking down the line of cars, pausing at each one. He got to their car and his father rolled down the window.
Lillian leaned over to peer out the window. “Sheriff Dave, what’s happening here?”
“A large tug and another boat pulled loose and hit the bridge. We’re not sure it’s safe to cross. Looks like some major damage. We’re asking people to head back to the community center. I’m trying to get the city alert system to send out the alert about it.”
Just then Lillian and Zoe’s phones rang with the alert sound. Lillian glanced at hers. “Here it is. Hopefully, people will get the message.”
“We’ll head there now.” Gary rolled up the window.
Slowly, one by one, the cars got enough room between them to turn around. Gary swung around in his turn and headed to the community center. He pulled up as close to the center as he could get. “You all get out here. I’ll go park. Mason, watch over Lillian and Lucky.”
He nodded to his father as he helped Lillian out of the vehicle.
“I’m fine. Don’t worry about me.” Lillian kept a firm grip on Lucky’s leash and darted toward the door to the community center.
Zoe appeared at his side and they rushed through the rain, following Lillian into the center.
Once inside, he blinked his eyes, adjusting to the light. Sara sat at a table by the door, taking down everyone’s name as they entered. She jumped up and hugged Zoe. “Noah will be so glad to see you. He’s been worried about you.”
“The Yarnies will be getting food and hot coffee ready for everyone. I’m going to go help,” Lillian said. “Will you tell Gary where I am when he gets inside?”
“Sure will.” Sara wrote down Lillian’s name on her list along with Zoe’s and his.
“The Yarnies?” Mason asked.
“That’s the knitting group here at the community center,” Sara explained.
“Do you need help?” Mason offered, wanting to feel like he was doing something, anything. Maybe it would help take the edge off the uneasiness surging through him.
“Why don’t you go find Noah? He’ll know what needs to be done.” Sara turned to a new group of people entering the center and wrote the names of a family of four.
Zoe took his hand and led him to the main room. The room was filled with people standing or sitting and talking in groups. A nervous energy crackled throughout the space but people remained calm.
Noah stood at the far end of the room, giving directions to people. He enveloped Zoe into a hug as soon as they got to him. “Ah, good. You’re here. At least you’re out of the storm. I should have sent you to safety days ago. I know how these storms can change.” A deep look of concern etched Noah’s features.
“Uncle Noah, I’ll be fine. We all will. We’ll just wait out the storm here at the center.”
“What can we do to help?” Mason asked as he looked around at the crowd of people pouring into the room.
“There are more chairs in the storage area. Looks like we’ll have a full house with the bridge closed. And bring in some blankets. Some of the people look soaked.”
Good. Something to keep him busy. Zoe took his hand, again… he was getting kind of used to having her hand in his…
If he couldn’t have her curled up in his arms, that is. He smiled to himself as she led him off to get the supplies and wondered if he could steal a quick kiss in the storage area.
Chapter 11
Robin couldn’t sleep. The storm raged outside and her nerves matched its furor. She looked jealously at Jay sleeping peacefully on the couch. How he could sleep through the roar of the wind was a mystery. She got up and padded into the kitchen to make some tea. She flipped on one low under-counter ligh
t and opened the cabinets, searching silently.
“What are you looking for?” Jay came up behind her, his voice low and warm.
“I didn’t mean to wake you.”
“Had to get up to help you anyway.” A smile played on his lips as he reached out and pulled her into his arms.
She snuggled up next to him, grateful for his strong arms around her. Glad she’d agreed to stay here with him. “I was looking for tea. I thought that might calm me down some.”
“I have chamomile tea. Will that help?”
“You have chamomile?” That surprised her. He didn’t seem a chamomile type of guy, if there was such a thing.
“My grandmother always loved to have a cup of it at night. It reminds me of her, so I keep some on hand.” He let her go and put some water on to boil, then opened the cabinet next to the stove and took out the tea bags.
Who knew he was such a nostalgic person? Though she knew he missed his grandmother terribly. Even after being friends with him for five years, there were so many little things she didn’t know about him.
They sat down at the table, waiting for the water to get hot.
“So, you can’t sleep, huh?” He reached out and rubbed a thumb across the back of her hand.
The gesture was amazingly comforting. “I’m just restless. I rarely can sleep when we’re on storm watch.”
“Maybe the chamomile will help.”
The subtle warm light surrounded them and for a few minutes, she didn’t even mind the storm. It was peaceful just sitting here in the low light with Jay, waiting for their tea.
The peace was shattered with the jarring sound of an alert. She snatched her phone from her pocket as Jay did the same with his.
“Gotta get off the island, Robs.” Jay rose in one swift motion and crossed over and turned off the stove. “Tea will have to wait until I can find you some after we’re safely on the mainland and inland a ways.”
